Sail Rail to Ireland

SailRail - http://www.sailrail.co.uk - offer all-inclusive tickets for ferry and train travel between Wales, Scotland and Ireland. SailRail tickets can be used for journeys between train stations on either side of the Irish Sea using crossings from Belfast and Stranraer, Dublin to Holyhead, Dun Laoghaire to Holyhead and Rosslare to Fishguard. Tickets can be booked by calling 08450 755 755

Stranraer to Belfast

First ScotRail operates rail services between Glasgow Central Station and Stranraer. The train station at Stranraer is a two minute walk from the port. Stena Line service the crossing to Belfast Port which takes 1hr 45mins, operating 3 times a day. At Belfast Port there is a shuttle bus to the town centre but the 96 bus route also is on hand should the shuttle bus be full. From the town centre five stations branch out across Northern Ireland, these being Central, Botanic, City Hospital, Victoria Street and Yorkgate.

Popular Tickets:

Newcastle from £37

Glasgow from £29

Edinburgh from £29

Holyhead to Dublin

Virgin Trains and Arriva Trains Wales connect services from Scotland, the North-West, Midlands and London. Holyhead train station is a two minute walk from the port which is serviced by both Irish Ferries and Stena Line. Irish Ferries offers four daily crossings, some of which use the catamaran which cuts the crossing time down from 3hrs 15mins to 2hrs, although this service is more prone to cancellation. Stena Line offers a single crossing each day with a crossing time of 3hrs 15mins. Stena Line and Irish Ferries arrive at different ports but in Dublin but they are both make use of the onward shuttle service to Dublin Central bus station, a short walk from Heuston station.

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London from £27

Newcastle from £27

Manchester from £24

Holyhead to Dun Laoghaire, 11km from Dublin

(Getting to the port as per Holyhead-Dublin crossing). This crossing is serviced by Stena Line twice daily and takes just 1hr 40mins. On arrival in Dun Laoghaire, another two minute walk will take you to Dun Laoghaire train station which is serviced by the DART service to Dublin and south-eastern Railways.

The Holyhead to Dun Laoghaire crossing is used to get to Cork, tickets start from £41 (leaving from Birmingham).

Fishguard to Rosslare

First Great Western and Arriva Trains Wales connect services around London, Oxford, Bristol and South Wales to Fishguard Harbour, a short walk from Fishguard train station. The Stena Line crossing takes 3hr 30mins and sails twice a day. On arrival at Rosslare, the Rosslare Europort offers train connections out west to Limerick and Cork.

Bikes can be taken on board Irish Ferries and Stena Line ships for £5 with no need for reservation, check their websites to find out more.

For more information on ticket options visit the SailRail website.

SailRail is a unique initiative that offersall-inclusive tickets for combined ferry and train travel between Britain and Ireland. It enables you to buy a ticket from any British train station to several ports in Wales and Scotland and then the onward ferry travel to Ireland. For example, a combined train and ferry ticket one-way via Holyhead from Newcastleto Dublin Port costs from £36, London to Dublin from £38 and Manchester to Dublin from £33.

It's a 2-minute walk from the train arrival platform to the ferry check-in at Holyhead. Photo: Richard Hammond

SailRail tickets can be used for ferry journeys across the Irish Sea via Stranraer (Southeast Scotland), Holyhead (North Wales) and Fishguard (Southwest Wales) on either Irish Ferries or Stena Line services.

The service is an excellent way to travel without flying or driving. You can buy tickets online at the Raileasy website or at any National Rail station in England, Scotland or Wales. Prices work out very reasonably, such as the London-Dublin route which costs from £38 one way.

If you're travelling from Ireland, Raileasy is currently only able to post to addresses in the UK so tickets for journeys departing from Belfast, Dublin or any other Irish station will need to be collected from a UK station with ticket on departure facilities before the date of travel or sent to a UK address by post. Alternatively, you can buy SailRail tickets from a number of Irish stations, including: Athlone, Ballina, Claremorris, Dublin Connolly, Dundalk, Drogheda, Ennis, Galway, Longford, Mallow, Cork, Tralee, Killarney, Waterford, Limerick, Limerick Junction, Sligo, Thurles, Tullamore and Westport.

Sail Rail Holyhead to DublinVirgin Trains and Arriva Trains Wales connect services from Scotland, the North-West, Midlands and London. Holyhead train station is a two minute walk from the port which is serviced by both Irish Ferries and Stena Line. Irish Ferries offers four daily crossings, some of which use the catamaran which cuts the crossing time down from 3hrs 15mins to 2hrs, although this service is more prone to cancellation. Stena Line offers a single crossing each day with a crossing time of 3hrs 15mins. Stena Line and Irish Ferries arrive at different ports in Dublin but they both make use of the onward shuttle service to Dublin Central bus station (Busaras), a short walk from Connolly station. If you are heading to Heuston station, it costs €1.50 on the LUAS tram from Connolly.

Customers travelling at the weekend on Virgin Trains can apply for an upgrade to first class for £15. Photo: GreentravellerRail and Sail Ticket Priceto Dublin via Holyhead: From London £38; from Newcastle £36; from Manchester £43.

Sail Rail Holyhead to Dun LaoghaireDun Laoghaire is 11km from Dublin (for info on getting to the port, see 'Holyhead-Dublin'). This crossing is serviced by Stena Line twice daily and takes just 1hr 40mins. On arrival in Dun Laoghaire, it's just a two minute walk to Dun Laoghaire train station which is serviced by the DART service to Dublin and south-eastern Railways.

[The Holyhead to Dun Laoghaire crossing is also used to travel to Cork. Tickets, for example, cost from £41 via train from Birmingham)].

Stena Line is one of the ferry operators that offers combined rail and ferry tickets from several UK portsSail Rail Fishguard to RosslareFirst Great Western and Arriva Trains Wales connect services around London, Oxford, Bristol and South Wales to Fishguard Harbour, a short walk from Fishguard train station. The Stena Line crossing takes 3hr 30mins and sails twice a day. On arrival at Rosslare, the Rosslare Europort offers train connections out west to Limerick and Cork.

Bikes can be taken on board Irish Ferries and Stena Line ships for £5 with no need for reservation, check their websites to find out more.